LobbyChat vs China Payments Plugin | Accept WeChat Pay, Alipay & UnionPay | Chinese Checkout Optimization

LobbyChat is a lightweight live-chat shoutbox you can drop into any WordPress page or sidebar with a single shortcode. Built for communities — fan sites, forums, fandoms, classrooms, internal teams — where you want a casual, always-on group chat without bolting on Slack or Discord. What you get Live chat feed with auto-refresh (configurable polling interval — no WebSocket server required) Guest posting — visitors can chat with just a display name, no signup wall Emoji reactions on every message — 👍 ❤️ 😂 🔥 🎉 Link previews for YouTube and any URL with Open Graph tags @mention highlighting — @username gets visually picked out Pinned messages — moderators can pin one important message above the feed Online presence — live count of members, guests, and search-engine bots in the room Moderator role — add a “LobbyChat Moderator” role to any user for pin/delete powers Reporting + auto-hide — 5 reports on a message and it’s hidden automatically Word blocklist for basic profanity filtering Rate limiting built in — separate cooldowns for guests vs members Fullscreen mode + collapse toggle Sound notification for new messages (toggleable per-visitor) Mobile responsive Optional: AI Chat Companion LobbyChat ships with an optional AI bot you can drop into your chat. The bot uses your own API keys — you bring your own Google Gemini key (the free tier works) or OpenAI key. The plugin does not route requests through any third-party server. Bring-your-own-key — Gemini (free tier) or OpenAI (paid) Configurable persona — name, system prompt, custom personality Smart triggers — replies to @mentions always; questions usually; random messages occasionally (all configurable) Hard rate limits — daily and hourly caps protect against runaway API costs Active-hours window — bot only chats during the hours you specify One-click test in the admin to verify the bot can post Privacy & data LobbyChat does not call any third-party server by default. The only network calls are: Fetching link previews when a user shares a URL (request goes from your server to that URL) Calling Google Gemini or OpenAI only if you explicitly enable the AI bot and provide an API key No telemetry, no analytics, no “phone home.” All data lives in your own wp_lobbychat* tables. Try it live See LobbyChat running in production at bejaunty.com/plugins/lobbychat. Roadmap LobbyChat is the free, standalone version. Premium add-ons with gaming-community features — looking-for-group buttons, platform tags, profile-card integration, and richer moderation tools — are in development. Updates and announcements at bejaunty.com. Support development LobbyChat is free and developed in spare time. If it helps your community, you can support development at wise.com/pay/me/asadk372. Every bit is appreciated. ♥ Usage After activating, drop this shortcode into any page, post, or text widget: [lobbychat] Then visit Settings → LobbyChat to configure rate limits, blocklist, and other options. For the AI bot, see Settings → LobbyChat AI Bot. Developer hooks LobbyChat exposes several filters and actions for theme/plugin developers: lobbychat_after_send — action, fires after a message is saved. do_action('lobbychat_after_send', $user_id, $message_id, $row) — the third arg is the database row object. lobbychat_profile_url — filter, override the URL linked from a username (default: WP author archive) lobbychat_allowed_reactions — filter, override the array of allowed reaction emoji lobbychat_report_threshold — filter, change the auto-hide report threshold (default: 5) lobbychat_emoji_set — filter, customize the array of emoji shown in the picker External services This plugin does not connect to any external service by default. Two optional features may, only when explicitly enabled by the site administrator, contact third-party services: 1. Link previews When the link-sharing feature is enabled (Settings → LobbyChat → “Allow link sharing”, which is on by default), and a logged-in user shares a URL in chat, the plugin’s server fetches that URL once to extract Open Graph / Twitter / metadata for a preview card. What is sent: The HTTP request from your server to the URL the user pasted. The request user-agent identifies as LobbyChatBot/1.0 and includes a link back to your site. When: Only at the moment a user posts a message containing a URL. What is received and stored: Title, description, and image URL extracted from the page’s metadata. Stored in the chat message row in your database. Special handling for YouTube URLs: YouTube URLs are first sent to YouTube’s public oEmbed endpoint (https://www.youtube.com/oembed) to retrieve title and author info. YouTube’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy apply. This feature can be fully disabled by un-checking “Allow link sharing” in plugin settings. 2. Optional AI chat companion When the AI bot is explicitly enabled by the administrator (Settings → LobbyChat AI Bot → “Enable bot”, which is off by default) and the administrator has provided their own API key for one or both of the providers below, chat messages are sent to that provider for the bot to generate replies. Google Gemini API (https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/) * What it is: Google’s generative AI service, used here to produce conversational chat replies. * What is sent: Up to 6 most recent chat messages (sender display name + message text), the bot’s system prompt, and the administrator’s Gemini API key. * When: Only when the administrator has enabled the bot AND a chat message satisfies the bot’s reply-trigger rules (mention, question, or random chance — all configurable). * Terms and privacy: Google APIs Terms of Service, Gemini API Additional Terms, Google Privacy Policy. OpenAI API (https://api.openai.com/) * What it is: OpenAI’s chat completions API, used here as a fallback when Gemini fails or as the primary if only an OpenAI key is configured. * What is sent: Same as Gemini above (recent messages + system prompt + administrator’s OpenAI API key). * When: Same conditions as Gemini above. * Terms and privacy: OpenAI Terms of Use, OpenAI API Data Usage Policies, OpenAI Privacy Policy. The AI bot is disabled by default and will not contact any external service unless the administrator explicitly enables it and provides an API key. 3. Optional Cloudflare Turnstile spam protection When Turnstile is explicitly enabled by the administrator (Settings → LobbyChat → Spam protection, off by default) and a site key and secret key are provided, the plugin uses Cloudflare’s Turnstile service to verify that the person posting is not a bot. Cloudflare Turnstile (https://challenges.cloudflare.com/) * What it is: Cloudflare’s privacy-focused CAPTCHA alternative, used here to block automated spam before a message is posted. * What is sent: When a user submits a message, the Turnstile token generated in their browser plus the user’s IP address are sent from your server to Cloudflare’s siteverify endpoint, along with your secret key, to confirm the token is valid. The browser-side widget also loads Cloudflare’s api.js script from challenges.cloudflare.com. * When: Only when Turnstile is enabled and a user attempts to post a message (optionally limited to guests only). * Terms and privacy: Cloudflare Website Terms of Use, Cloudflare Privacy Policy. Turnstile is disabled by default and will not contact any external service unless the administrator explicitly enables it and provides their own keys.

Accept WeChat Pay, Alipay & UnionPay via Stripe with a checkout flow fully optimized for Chinese customers. Localize your entire checkout to Simplified Chinese, display prices in CNY alongside your store currency, and accept the payment methods Chinese shoppers trust most. WooCommerce, MemberPress, LifterLMS, and Simple Membership are supported. 💳 ACCEPT WECHAT PAY, ALIPAY & UNIONPAY VIA STRIPE Accept WeChat Pay, Alipay, or UnionPay card payments with the powerful Stripe.com integration. We’ve implemented the best practices for accepting WeChat Pay via dynamic QR codes, Alipay redirection, and inline UnionPay card entry for Chinese customers. ✅ PERFECT FOR: eCommerce stores selling to China. English teachers working with Chinese students. Selling Memberships to Chinese customers. Anybody who wants to accept WeChat Pay or Alipay and can register for a Stripe account in a Stripe supported country. 🔌 POWERFUL INTEGRATIONS WooCommerce MemberPress LifterLMS Simple Membership Payment Page 🤝 FAMILIAR CHINESE PAYMENT METHODS Offering local payment methods is vital to a successful China-focused business, so we’ve made it easy to accept UnionPay cards, WeChat Pay, and Alipay with the power of the Stripe API. UnionPay card details are entered inline on your checkout page — no redirects needed. 🌐 2 DEFAULT CURRENCY OPTIONS WeChat Pay and Alipay support your Stripe account default currency and can display either the default or the CNY equivalent on checkout. Our currency conversion integration gives you even more flexibility. 🔒 SECURE & ENCRYPTED PAYMENTS Stripe integration ensures payment details are processed securely and privately no matter where you’re located. The plugin also prevents payment if you don’t have SSL enabled on your site. 🆘 TOP-NOTCH SUPPORT Get red-carpet support from the Gaucho Plugins team. Just submit a ticket. Supported Stripe Payment Methods Alipay (Free) WeChat Pay (Free) UnionPay Cards (Free) — inline card entry on checkout Free Integrations WooCommerce MemberPress LifterLMS Simple Membership Please read more about free and pro features below. FREE FEATURES One-time Alipay payments. One-time WeChat Pay payments. UnionPay card payments with inline card entry (no redirect). Integrations with WooCommerce, MemberPress, LifterLMS, and Simple Membership. Stripe Connect for easily connecting your Stripe account w/o API keys. PRO FEATURES Remove 2% Transaction Fee — keep more of every sale. Chinese Checkout Localization — automatically translate your entire WooCommerce checkout, cart, and storefront into Simplified Chinese (简体中文). Buttons, labels, error messages, and more — all localized. Multi-Currency Display (CNY) — show prices in both your store currency and Chinese Yuan (¥ CNY) side-by-side, so Chinese customers instantly understand pricing. Real-Time Currency Conversion — live exchange rate conversion to CNY displayed throughout shop, cart, and checkout. Checkout Optimizations Dashboard — toggle localization and multi-currency features on/off from a dedicated Optimizations tab in the plugin settings. Demos WooCommerce Checkout MemberPress Checkout LifterLMS Checkout Simple Membership Demo 🌱 PLANS & PRICING > 🚧 ROADMAP > 🆘 SUPPORT > WooCommerce Setup Video Are you selling to Chinese customers? This is the perfect plugin for business owners or entrepreneurs who want to accept WeChat Pay or Alipay payments from Chinese customers. Stripe.com supports WeChat Pay and Alipay payments, meaning you don’t have to set up a WeChat Official Account or register your business in China in order to accept WeChat Pay. Now, you can easily charge Chinese consumers using a payment method familiar to them and then have the funds deposited into your domestic bank account associated with Stripe. Simple and easy! WeChat Pay, Alipay & UnionPay Payments Work Seamlessly Desktop UX: WeChat Pay generates a QR code for the end-user to scan using their mobile device Alipay payments redirect the user to Alipay’s website, which displays a QR code for the same mobile payment process or to login to the user’s Alipay account, then automatically redirects the end-user back to your selected thank you page upon payment completion UnionPay card details are entered directly on your checkout page via a secure Stripe-powered inline card form — no redirect needed. Users are redirected to the Thank You page Mobile UX: WeChat users must generate the code on another device and scan it with their WeChat app. A notification pops up on the form notifying them to do this. Alipay users are redirected to the corresponding payment website on their mobile browsers to complete payment. UnionPay card entry works seamlessly on mobile with a responsive inline form. Users are redirected to the Thank You page Please note You must have a verified Stripe.com account in a supported Stripe country to use this plugin. Alipay and WeChat payments can only be accepted from Alipay and WeChat accounts that have been identity verified. Stripe cannot presently accept payments from unverified Alipay and WeChat accounts, but this may be subject to change. WeChat Pay supports one-time payments from Chinese customers. Stripe + Alipay support one-time payments from Chinese customers out of the box. The plugin does not support recurring Alipay payments. China Payments Plugin requires you to Connect your Stripe account in order to function properly for TEST or LIVE payments. If you have any problems or need installation support, we kindly request you please contact us for support BEFORE leaving negative feedback. We will do our best to resolve your issue or use your feedback to improve future releases. ⭐️ SAVE 35% WITH CHINA PLUGINS BUNDLE ⭐️ Like the plugins? China Plugins Bundle covers eCommerce, uptime, and speed optimization to ensure your China-based website visitors have the best possible experience on your website. SAVE 35% | LEARN MORE CHINA PAYMENTS PLUGIN Easily accept WeChat Pay and Alipay payments from Chinese customers. DOWNLOAD FREE | WEBSITE BLOCKED IN CHINA Check if your site is available from mainland China servers. DOWNLOAD FREE | WEBSITE SPEED IN CHINA Run website speed tests from mainland China servers. DOWNLOAD FREE | WEBSITE GAUCHO PLUGINS PORTFOLIO Payment Page: Start accepting payments in a beautiful payment form in less than 60 seconds Split Pay Plugin: Split WooCommerce payments across multiple connected Stripe accounts. Login for Stripe Customer Portal: Create an Account login area for your Stripe customers. Gyta Buyback: Create a trade-in / buyback business using WooCommerce. Version Info: Show WP, PHP, MySQL & Web Server Versions in the WP-Admin Dashboard. China Payments Plugin: Accept WeChat Pay and Alipay payments from Chinese customers. Blocked in China: Check if your website is available in the Chinese mainland. Speed in China: Check your website’s speed in the Chinese mainland. External Services This plugin connects to the following external services when you connect your Stripe account and process payments. Stripe (api.stripe.com) This plugin uses the Stripe API to accept WeChat Pay, Alipay, and UnionPay payments, connect your Stripe account, and process checkout transactions. Payment and customer data required to complete checkout is sent to Stripe according to your Stripe account configuration. Stripe Terms of Service Stripe Privacy Policy Freemius (api.freemius.com, freemius.com) This plugin includes the Freemius SDK for premium licensing and updates. Data is sent to Freemius when you opt in through the Freemius connect screen. Freemius Terms of Service Freemius Privacy Policy